Background: Deucravacitinib is a selective, allosteric tyrosine kinase 2 inhibitor that blocks cytokine signaling for the treatment of psoriasis.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of deucravacitinib 6 mg versus placebo at week 16.

Methods: We followed the PRISMA statement guidelines. We systematically searched PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and Embase databases to include published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) until January 19th,2023. The efficacy outcomes measured were Psoriasis Symptoms and Signs Diary (PSSD) score, Dermatology Life Quality Index score of 0 or 1 (DLQI 0/1), Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI); ≥75% reduction, ≥90% reduction and 100% reduction, static Physician’s Global Assessment score of 0 or 1 (sPGA 0/1) and scalp-specific Physician’s Global Assessment score of 0 or 1 (ss-PGA 0/1). We used a random-effect model to pool the data using RevMan, 5.4 version.

Results: A total of 4 RCTs with a total of 1542 participants were included in our study. Our analysis showed that PSSD score significantly decreased (MD= -23.45, 95% CI [-26.39, -20.52], P ˂ 0.00001), DLQI 0/1 significantly decreased (RR= 3.85, 95% CI [2.85, 5.22], P ˂ 0.00001), PASI 75 significantly decreased (RR= 3.97, 95% CI [2.37, 6.66], P ˂ 0.00001), sPGA 0/1 significantly decreased (RR= 6.28, 95% CI [4.52, 8.73], P ˂ 0.00001) and ss-PGA 0/1 significantly decreased (RR= 3.68, 95% CI [2.85, 4.77], P ˂ 0.00001) in the deucravacitinib group compared to the placebo group. According to the safety outcomes, all of them were insignificantly increased between the two groups.

Conclusion: deucravacitinib is a promising drug for treating psoriasis patients. larger studies for longer periods of time are required to prove its advantages and safety profile.